Bearing bushing



oct. 6, 1925. 1,556,467

R. BY. ABELL BEARING BUSHING Filed Jan. 26. 1925 Patented Oct. 6, 1925.

L f, l 1,556,46?!

" 1; I BEARING rmsjmrre.A

Application filed.y January 26, 1923. Serial N'b. 6142988.

Tofallw/iom t may/concern.'

Bei itknow-n that' I, ROY Bl AnELm-af citiy zen of' the: Dominion ofV Canada, residing at Vancouverginthe Province of British Columbia, Can-ada, have invented certain new and' use-ful Improvements yin Bearing Bushings; of' which the following is a specificatieni.

bearings of' various kinds, such for example,

as the bearingsofa universalj-'oin-t, andfhas forI its object the' provisionl of sucha device which can bead-justedfto prevent playv and avoidwear andlwliichl shallbe of'im roved ,construction and operation.

The invention lsexemplifiedA 1n the combination andL arrangement of parts shownin the accompanylngfdiawing and described in the following"specification; and it is `morel particularly pointedv out in claims.-

the appended In the, drawings, i

Fig; 1j is a, transverse sectional'view ofan' automobile drive shaft showing' the` universal joint bearing' therefor, in` elevation and illustrating one application of the present invention: 1

Fig;l 2 isa fragmentary section` on line 24-2'oflFig; 1'.. y

Fig' isla; perspective view .of an. ad-

justable disk forming part of the; present invention.

' In many'bearings. and especially bearings subj'ie'ctedltok stresses whichvary in their di- `3V5\ r ection, dihi'culties-have been experienced'in rventing' excessive'wear." l If 'the .direction of the stresses on. theA bearmgvaries at' frequent periodic intervals the' least looseness will: result in' a relativev movement of the' parts stresses,A so'that assoon as wear begins to loosen the bearing the resulting looseness will magnify the amount of wear and as a result the bearings are soon destroyed. A

conspicuous example of this diiiiculty is present in universal joints for shafts which operate at an angle to one another and especially to shafts subjected to heavy strains such as those of automobiles and automobile trucks.

A bearing of this kind having the present invention applied thereto is shown '1n the drawing, in which the numeral 1Q designates a split ring of a universal jomt of well knows @estrechos- The Parts. of the .Fmg

*This inventiony relates to bushings for at. each shiftr in' the direction' ofA thel are secured together by bolts 11 whichfar'e arrangedf at'- opposit'ef sides of four bearings 12, 13, 14 and'l. 'The shaftl l'is receivedv in the squared' openingA in an eye 17' con'- ne'ctedf by arms 18 with trunnions 19 receivedf in the-bearings 12y and 14. Similar arms'20 have trunnionsl 21 j'ournaled in the bearings 134 and;y 15j. Bushings' 22' are clampedbetweenthe halves ofthe bea-ringsv by the bolts'fl" and surroundtlie trunnions, providing,r` bearing surfaces therefor. Each ofthe bushings 22' is provided with a flange 23',v which tits against' the' inner endoft its bearing and limits the outward'movement ofl the bushing. Positionedwithinveach of the bushings 22"l is'- a Adiski 27', held in yplace against the end of the trunnion byv a setscrewv 28 and? lock* nut 29]'The inner faces of` the disks are provided rwith grooves 30 to facilitate: lubrication ofthe bearing surface, of' the diska'ndltlie endof'the trunnion 21. The set-screwv 28' is threaded into a boss 31; intheendy of" the bushing 22. The lateral walls of4k the bushings may beiV perforated by openings 32 for admitting lubrica- Y tion. and 331' fforreceiving, pins' 34E 'to hold' the bushings against rotation. Oil cups 35 are provided' for i i the bearings. i Y j In a'. joint" of' this kind' it isv important that the ring' 1() be centered'v relative totheI intersection ofthe axes of the. two shafts. If'vany' play i's'permitted.' in the bearings it will" result not onlyin wear onthe surfaces whichT receive the. end; thrust,Z but lateral movement o'ffone 'shaftl relative to the' axis' of'the'other tend's to'bindt'he bearings, caus-v ing the trunnions to bearunevenly against' tli'einnerfa'ces of;t the'bushings and' so wear depressions' infthese faces. In practice it has'been found that as soon as a slight endwise movement of the trunnion is permitted the lateral wear on the inner faces of the bushings is rapidly accelerated and the bushings soon become so misshaped that the joint is soon entirely out of commission.

Injthe present invention the adjustable disks 27 permit accurate adjustment of the position of the trunnions 21 in the direction of their axes, thus properly aligning the shafts and providing against endWSe play. It has been found that where proper adjustment of this kind is made when the bearing is first installed the life .o-f the joint is greatly increased before any ,looseness is noticeable, and if. the bearing is readjusted in case any looseness appears the life of the joint is many times that of a joint in which no adjustment is provided for. By properly caring for the end thrust en the bearings the trunnions run true in their bushings and the wear on the sides of the bushings is prevented, thus avoiding any necessity for lateral adjustments relative to the aXes of the trunnions.

l claim:

l. In a bearing, a supporting member, a hollow cylindrical bushing seated in said supporting member and having a closed end, a trunnion journaled in said bushing, a disc arranged Within said bushing between said trunnion and the closed end of said bushing and movable relative to said end in the direction of the axis of said trunnion, and a threaded member for moving said disc toward said trunnion, said threaded member being arranged to retain said disc in its adjusted positions against the force exerted thereon by said trunnion.

2. A bearing comprising a supporting member having an opening therein, a bushing seated in said opening and having a flange thereon for holding said bushing against movement in one direction, a trun` nien journaled in said bushing, a set-screw threaded in said bushing at the end thereof opposite said flange, a lock nut on said setscrew, and a bearing disk arranged Within said bushing between the end of said trunnion and said set-screw and adjustably held against said trunnion by said set-screw.

3. A shaft coupling comprising a bearing member having pairs of oppositely disposed bearings therein, a pair of ttings separate from one another and from said bearing member, each fitting having a pair of trunnions journaled in said bearings, shafts separate from said bearing member and rigidly connected with said fittings, bushings for said bearings having their outerends closed, and adjustable means within said bushings for receiving the end thrust of said trunnions.

4L. A flexible shaft coupling comprising a member having pairs of oppositely disposed bearings therein, a pair of fittings separate from one another and from said member, each having trunnions j ournaled in said bearings, bushings in said bearings for receiving said trunnions, said bushings having their outer ends closed, and bearing discs Within said bushings and adjustable relative thereto in the direction of the axes of said trunnions for engaging the ends of said trunnions and resisting end thrust thereon.

5. A. flexible shaft coupling comprising;` a ring having pairs of oppositely disposed bearings therein, bifurcated fittings separate from said ri ng, each having trunnions on the bifurcations thereof journaled in said bearings, angnlarly disposed shafts connected one With each of said iittings, bushings in said bearings for receiving said trunnions, disks disposed loosely in saidV bushings adjacent the ends of said trunnions, threaded members for adjusting said bushings relative to the ends of said trunnions to resist endwise thrust thereon and'means for locking said threaded members in any position of adjustment thereof. j

6. In a universal joint, a coupler member, shafts each having a journal bearing connection with said coupler member at right angles to the axis of the shafts, adjustable means for resisting end thrust on said bearing connections said adjustable means comprising a disc freely slidable Within said bearings, threaded members for sliding said disc, and means for locking said threaded members in their different positions of adjustment.

7. In a universal joint, a coupler .member, shafts each having a journal bearing connection with said coupler member com prising a trunnion and bushing, a bearing disk in each bushing adjacent the end of' the trunnion and limited in its movement to ward said trunnion by the end of said trunnion only regardless of the position of said trunnion -in said bushing, and adjustable means for holding the disks. against the ends of the trunnions. f

In testimony whereof ljhltve'ysigned my name to this specification'on this 28th day of December A. D; 1922.

' ROY B. ABELL. 

